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BBC News
35 minutes ago
- BBC News
Abandoned Cheltenham Voi e-scooters spark safety concerns
Abandoned electric scooters are becoming a nuisance for pedestrians, wheelchair users and people with pushchairs, it has been hazard concerns and reports of the Voi scooters being dumped across Cheltenham were raised at a recent Gloucestershire County Council resident Ian Weaving said there are a shortage of "clearly marked" parking bays, and the operating company should be more responsible for public safety.A Voi spokesperson said inconsiderate parking is "never acceptable", and said the company takes action against those who fail to comply, including issuing fines or bans. The scooters are available for rent in Cheltenham as part of an ongoing trial initiative aims to encourage more active transport and reduce the number of cars on the road. Under the hiring rules, users are required to return the scooters to designated bays when they have finished using said it conducts street patrols alongside a 'report a scooter' feature in the app to identify abandoned or improperly parked scooters. But Mr Weaving said in one case, an e-scooter was left on Southgate Drive for more than two weeks without being moved or collected."These scooters are often left on pavements, causing obstructions for pedestrians, wheelchair users and those with pushchairs," he said."There appear to be no clearly-marked bays for parking after use, and the scheme seems to rely entirely on residents to report misplaced or abandoned scooters." "Inconsiderate parking is never acceptable," a Voi spokesperson said."Whilst the vast majority of our e-scooter and e-bike riders in Cheltenham follow the rules, we take action against those who don't - including fines and potential bans."Thousands of people choose e-scooters and e-bikes every day to get to work and education, and we want our service to work for everyone."We're grateful the resident raised the issue and always appreciate community feedback regarding our scheme in Cheltenham."
Daily Mail
5 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Do you have more points on your driving licence than your neighbours? Find out with our penalty postcode search tool
Halifax, Huddersfield and Plymouth have the highest concentration of motorists with points on their driving licences, according to new analysis. Around one in ten motorists in these major towns and city have at least one penalty point on their record - and the average is four points per licence holder. This is based on the latest driver records held by the DLVA's database, which was last published in May. Want to know how many of your neighbours and drivers living in the same postcode area as you have points? And, just as importantly, if you have more or less than them? The Daily Mail has built a new search tool that will give you all the answers. To use our interactive feature below, simply enter your postcode and the number of points you have on your driving licence currently. It will then tell you if you have more or less than the average motorist in the town or city where you live. It also provides information about the number of licence holders, how many have at least one point, and the total points accrued by all motorists in the region. The new analysis of DVLA data has been conducted by number plate dealer, Regtransfers. It found that some regions across Britain are home to motorists with a proportionally higher count of driving offences. In total, Britons currently have 12 million active penalty points, as of May 2025. The national average number of points per driver with endorsements is four. According to the figures, Halifax tops the table with more than one in 10 licences registered in the area (10.1 per cent) having one or more penalty points. This means that every tenth driver on Halifax's roads likely has a recent history of offences. Endorsements stay on your driving record for four or 11 years depending on the offence. This can start from either the date you're convicted or the date of your offence. Huddersfield, Plymouth and Truro are the locations next on the list with the highest share of drivers with at least one point on their licence. Around nine in 10 registered licence holders have one. Again, the average number of points held per driver is four. In terms of regions where drivers have the most points, drivers in Oxford have an average of five per motorist. This is the highest in the UK and closest to the six-point disqualification threshold for new drivers (those who have only held licences for two years). For drivers who have had their licence for more than 24 months, an automatic ban only occurs when they've accrued 12 or more points at one time. Oxford does not feature in the top 10 list of areas with the highest proportion of drivers carrying existing offences. Top 10 postcode areas with the highest proportion of drivers with penalty points Town/City Licence holders (full & provisional) Licences with points Total points % of licences with points Avg points per licence Halifax 128,642 13,032 53,045 10.1 4 Huddersfield 212,189 19,479 79,148 9.2 4 Plymouth 457,398 41,239 165,915 9 4 Truro 263,286 23,661 93,845 9 4 Leeds 625,967 53,016 216,524 8.5 4 Telford 192,025 15,383 59,719 8 4 Bradford 456,659 36,192 152,612 7.9 4 Exeter 489,330 38,700 150,497 7.9 4 Wakefield 422,266 32,983 135,104 7.8 4 Torquay 246,618 19,178 74,806 7.8 4 Source: DVLA data accurate to May 2025 analysed by Regtransfers In raw numbers alone, driving licences registered in London account for 1.76 million of the UK's penalty points. The capital has highest number of licences with endorsements for one area in the UK - more than triple the next highest city (Birmingham with 356,974 points) and over 14 per cent of the country's total number of penalty points. On a per capita basis, London also tops the table with 212 penalty points per 1,000 licences - double the national town average. Mark Trimbee, chief executive of Regtransfers, said: 'When you look at the numbers, you realise just how many people are carrying penalty points on their licence. 'It's easy to assume poor driving habits are confined to big cities or motorways, but the data tells a different story, and it's interesting to see Halifax, Huddersfield and Plymouth at the top of our data.' He does, however, acknowledge something important about the statistics being shown. 'You might look at the data and believe that higher points in particular regions means it's a 'hotspot' of bad activity - but that's not necessarily the case,' Mark explains. 'Points can also be issued anywhere in the UK - somewhere other than a person's registered address, for instance. 'What this kind of data does help shine a light on, perhaps, are the areas where driving education - and good driving habits - might be falling short.'
Daily Mail
6 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Victims of killer self-driving Tesla on autopilot get a huge payout after four-year legal battle
A Miami jury has found Tesla was partly responsible for the 2019 crash of a self-driving vehicle that killed a woman and left her boyfriend badly injured to the tune of $242million in damages. Naibel Benavides Leon, 22, died after a Tesla Model S slammed in to her and boyfriend Dillon Angulo, then 27, in 2019. The couple had pulled over to look at the stars at the side of a road near Key Largo, Florida, when they were struck by the vehicle after driver George McGee took his eye off the road to reach for his phone. The federal jury held that Tesla bore significant responsibility because its technology failed and that not all the blame can be put on a reckless driver, even one who admitted he was distracted by his cellphone before hitting a young couple out gazing at the stars. The decision comes as Musk seeks to convince Americans his cars are safe enough to drive on their own as he plans to roll out a driverless taxi service in several cities in the coming months. Footage from the Tesla's front camera showed McGee blow through a red light as he speeds down the road at nearly 70mph. The car passes a stop sign and crashes through several other road signs before striking the couple's vehicle, which was parked 40 feet off Card Sound Road by County Road 905. Benavides Leon was thrown 75 feet and died at the scene, while Angulo suffered serious injuries, according to a wrongful death lawsuit filed against Tesla by the woman's estate. The decision ends a four-year long case remarkable not just in its outcome but that it even made it to trial. Many similar cases against Tesla have been dismissed and, when that didn't happen, settled by the company to avoid the spotlight of a trial. 'This will open the floodgates,' said Miguel Custodio, a car crash lawyer not involved in the Tesla case. 'It will embolden a lot of people to come to court.' The case also included startling charges by lawyers for the family of Leon and for her injured boyfriend Angulo. They claimed Tesla either hid or lost key evidence, including data and video recorded seconds before the accident. Tesla said it made a mistake after being shown the evidence and honestly hadn´t thought it was there. 'We finally learned what happened that night, that the car was actually defective,' said Benavides' sister, Neima Benavides. 'Justice was achieved.' The decision comes as Elon Musk (pictured) seeks to convince Americans his cars are safe enough to drive on their own as he plans to roll out a driverless taxi service in several cities in the coming months Tesla has previously faced criticism that it is slow to cough up crucial data by relatives of other victims in Tesla crashes, accusations that the car company has denied. In this case, the plaintiffs showed Tesla had the evidence all along, despite its repeated denials, by hiring a forensic data expert who dug it up. 'Today´s verdict is wrong,' Tesla said in a statement, 'and only works to set back automotive safety and jeopardize Tesla´s and the entire industry´s efforts to develop and implement lifesaving technology,' They said the plaintiffs concocted a story 'blaming the car when the driver - from day one - admitted and accepted responsibility.' In addition to a punitive award of $200 million, the jury said Tesla must also pay $43 million of a total $129 million in compensatory damages for the crash, bringing the total borne by the company to $243 million. 'It's a big number that will send shock waves to others in the industry,' said financial analyst Dan Ives of Wedbush Securities. 'It's not a good day for Tesla.' Tesla said it will appeal. Even if that fails, the company says it will end up paying far less than what the jury decided because of a pre-trial agreement that limits punitive damages to three times Tesla´s compensatory damages. Translation: $172 million, not $243 million. But the plaintiff says their deal was based on a multiple of all compensatory damages, not just Tesla´s, and the figure the jury awarded is the one the company will have to pay. It´s not clear how much of a hit to Tesla´s reputation for safety the verdict in the Miami case will make. Tesla has vastly improved its technology since the crash on a dark, rural road in Key Largo, Florida, in 2019. But the issue of trust generally in the company came up several times in the case, including in closing arguments Thursday. The plaintiffs´ lead lawyer, Brett Schreiber, said Tesla´s decision to even use the term Autopilot showed it was willing to mislead people and take big risks with their lives because the system only helps drivers with lane changes, slowing a car and other tasks, falling far short of driving the car itself. Schreiber said other automakers use terms like 'driver assist' and 'copilot' to make sure drivers don´t rely too much on the technology. 'Words matter,' Schreiber said. 'And if someone is playing fast and lose with words, they´re playing fast and lose with information and facts.' Schreiber acknowledged that the driver, George McGee, was negligent when he blew through flashing lights, a stop sign and a T-intersection at 62 miles an hour before slamming into a Chevrolet Tahoe that the couple had parked to get a look at the stars. The Tahoe spun around so hard it was able to launch Benavides 75 feet through the air into nearby woods where her body was later found. It also left Angulo, who walked into the courtroom Friday with a limp and cushion to sit on, with broken bones and a traumatic brain injury. But Schreiber said Tesla was at fault nonetheless. He said Tesla allowed drivers to act recklessly by not disengaging the Autopilot as soon as they begin to show signs of distraction and by allowing them to use the system on smaller roads that it was not designed for, like the one McGee was driving on. 'I trusted the technology too much,' said McGee at one point in his testimony. 'I believed that if the car saw something in front of it, it would provide a warning and apply the brakes.' The lead defense lawyer in the Miami case, Joel Smith, countered that Tesla warns drivers that they must keep their eyes on the road and hands on the wheel yet McGee chose not to do that while he looked for a dropped cellphone, adding to the danger by speeding. Noting that McGee had gone through the same intersection 30 or 40 times previously and hadn´t crashed during any of those trips, Smith said that isolated the cause to one thing alone: 'The cause is that he dropped his cellphone.' The auto industry has been watching the case closely because a finding of Tesla liability despite a driver´s admission of reckless behavior would pose significant legal risks for every company as they develop cars that increasingly drive themselves.
